Bloomberg News has spoken to a number of owners of both dogs and cats in the US. What they all have in common is that they want to give their "furry pets" as long a life as possible. The way to do this is via nutritional supplements, various forms of treatment such as red-light therapy or, in some cases, peptides that are used in humans for skin care, for example.
Thousands of kronor
One person interviewed says she spends $500 a month on her dogs. According to the American Pet Products Association, the market for nutritional supplements has increased by 56 percent among dog owners and 70 percent among cat owners.
This is also an industry that generated $158 billion in sales in the United States last year - a record that is expected to be broken this year.
One problem, however, is that just as many people buy illegal and unapproved drugs online for themselves, they are now doing the same for their pets.
"We see people buying things from Asia, all sorts of strange concoctions, like herbal supplements," says Jane Sykes, a professor of small animal medicine at the University of California.
Stop treatment
In many cases, it is precisely these medications that make the dog or cat feel unwell. Veterinarians then try to encourage the owner to stop the treatment, which is not always easy.
It can be very difficult to get the owners to do that, says Jane Sykes.
At the same time, there are also several companies in the US fully focused on developing medical preparations that ultimately aim to extend the lifespan of pets. Elanco Animal Health, a spin-off from pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, focuses on cancer treatment in dogs as well as chronic kidney disease in cats, among other things.
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